Chapter 531 - 320: Evil Thought Embodiment, Receiving the Martial Saint’s Inheritance, Divine Blade Zhu Xie

It wasn’t just Lu Mingyuan and the others who saw the mysterious Ancient Ship; the many fellow Cultivators on deck saw it as well.

One of the young Daoists felt the hair on his body stand on end. "What’s going on?" he asked, astonished. "Why does it look like that ship is covered in pale skeletons, with what seems to be hundreds or thousands of Ghosts walking on it?"

Li Muwan, who had also seen the horrifying scene on the other ship, grew pale. In a low voice, she said, "I once heard from one of the locals that over the past millennium, many overconfident Cultivators have tried to brave the Returning Ruins Silent Sea without a Divine Stone. They met a tragic end and were forever lost to these waters.

Obviously, this Ancient Ship heading toward us is a ship of the dead. Its crew were once Cultivators exploring the Returning Ruins Silent Sea. Now they’ve been possessed by Immortal Evil Thought. They are extremely dangerous. Don’t let them get close! We need to turn back, now!"

It was as if Lu Mingyuan hadn’t heard Li Muwan. His gaze was fixed on the area behind their ship. "I’m afraid we can’t turn back," he said.

At some unknown point, a massive iceberg had floated up behind them, coming to a stop just off the stern of their Ancient Ship.

Trapped within the iceberg was a colossal, tusked Wild Elephant. It was covered in thick brown fur and was as large as a mountain.

’Who knew what era this creature was from? He had never seen anything like it.’

A figure stood at the bow of the mysterious Ancient Ship.

The figure at the forefront had a tall, straight posture. He held a Bone Saber and stood perfectly erect, clad in Bone Armor strung together from a thousand bone shards. He looked like a warrior who had walked straight out of Yama Hell.

’What is that unholy thing?’

Lu Mingyuan held his breath, his hand tightening around his Famous Sword Yang Su as he entered a state of high alert.

KAKAKA.

Letting out a sinister cackle, the shadowy figure suddenly vanished.

It hadn’t truly vanished. It was simply moving too fast for Lu Mingyuan’s eyes to track.

Acting on pure reflex, Lu Mingyuan drew his sword in a flash, slashing upwards and leaving a crescent-shaped trail of light.

BOOM! The Abyssal Ancient Sword struck what felt like an iron wall, the force of the impact making Lu Mingyuan’s arm go numb.

Lu Mingyuan, holding Yang Su, unleashed a powerful strike.

Immediately after, twelve black tentacles shot out from the figure’s chest. They coiled around the blade, attempting to rip Yang Su from his hands.

The power bursting from the black tentacles was immense. Lu Mingyuan quickly infused the blade with Thunder Primordial Qi, then unleashed his Sword Intent to shatter all twelve.

He executed the Body Technique and Divine Power of Carefree Travel, retreating ten zhang in an instant.

Lu Mingyuan stood on the deck, his expression grim.

’So it really is a ship from the Middle Ages. Just a single shadow emerging from it is this terrifying.’

’As a Celestial Human Realm Martial Cultivator, this is the first time I’ve faced such a tricky situation.’

’Those tentacles... they were beyond his comprehension. He had no idea what they were.’

’They were neither living creatures nor Ghost Fiends.’

’They were a completely unknown form of life.’

’The sea is incredibly dangerous. If they manage to board the ship, we’ll all be slaughtered.’

The hundred or so people on board all gathered together, preparing to jointly fend off the beings from the mysterious Ancient Ship.

Many of them unleashed powerful Magic, trying to sink the mysterious Ancient Ship.

But their attacks only struck the Ancient Ship’s surface, where they were stopped by a thin membrane resembling an Array. They had no effect whatsoever.

KYEHEHEH.

Suddenly, a strange sound came from outside the cabins—it sounded very much like the shadow’s laughter.

Lu Mingyuan gathered everyone together, lest anyone be left behind. Looking up at the floating phantoms, he asked gravely:

"What in the world are those things?"

Sui Yuqing remained calm and composed. She glanced at Lu Mingyuan and answered, "Those are Evil Thought Embodiments of Immortals. When a living creature’s Flesh Body is invaded by these evil thoughts, its consciousness is stripped away, and it becomes a complete Puppet. Once these embodiments gain the protection of a Flesh Body, they are no longer afraid of the light from a Divine Fallen Blood Stone."

"Are they living beings or undead spirits?" Lu Mingyuan asked.

"They are neither living beings nor undead spirits."

Sui Yuqing thought for a moment about how to explain. "Back in the Mythical Era," she said, "every Immortal and Divine Being had their own will. They basked in the worship of the Mortal World and sent their thoughts into the mortal plane to interfere with its affairs."

"This Returning Ruins Silent Sea is the burial ground of Immortals and Divine Beings. All the dead creatures we’ve seen on our journey here are proof of that. Their souls have completely vanished, but their negative will and thoughts linger on."

"What’s truly puzzling is why these negative evil thoughts have, for some unknown reason, been preserved for ten thousand years without scattering. They’ve transformed into ferocious Immortal Evil Thoughts that attack any living creature on sight."

Lu Mingyuan’s brow furrowed. "An evil thought is just a single thought from an ancient Immortal or Divine Being," he said. "Can a thought really cultivate until it takes physical form and unleashes power more terrifying than a Celestial Human Realm Martial Artist?"

Sui Yuqing said gravely, "That is what makes the Returning Ruins Silent Sea so terrifying. Any living being that enters this place will be assimilated and become one of them."

Lu Mingyuan could distinctly feel a deathly cold current of air wash over him.

’Since these Evil Thought Bodies are hiding within a Flesh Body, they can avoid being suppressed by the Divine Stone’s power.’

’If I were to drive the Divine Stone’s power into their bodies, would it have some kind of special effect?’

As this thought crossed his mind, Lu Mingyuan decided to put it to the test.

He took the Divine Fallen Blood Stone from his Celestial Treasure Golden Pouch, drew upon its power, and fused it with his Martial Dao Primordial Qi.

And then, he struck!

A Blood Dragon Qi Pillar, seemingly blessed with divine aid, blasted forth and sent the countless mysterious black shadows flying.